by V. A. Dold
“One of the men my mother tried to pair me up with,” she replied. “I’m pretty sure you’re the only man who thinks these extra pounds are sexy.”
He stiffened, his gut clenched at her attitude of little to no self-esteem.
“You couldn’t be more wrong,” he growled.
“The past six guys she presented me to said, and I quote, ‘You’re kidding, right? Where is your actual daughter? There’s no way this fat chick is your pup.’”
Shock and anger coursed through Thomas. His fist clenched and unclenched, itching to strangle his not yet mother-in-law. Lucinda was a mean-hearted, selfish bitch who didn’t deserve her daughter. Hell, she didn’t deserve oxygen.
“Your mother has a lot to answer for. I can’t honestly say I’ll be polite the next time I see her. There are a few things I need to straighten her out about.”
“Don’t waste your breath. She’s too stupid or too bullheaded to hear a word that contradicts her beliefs.”
“At least tell me you don’t believe those bastards. You’re so smoking hot I’m about to split my jeans.”
“Really?” Julia said, her eyes growing hot. “Maybe I should investigate that claim?”
He nodded with a sexy grin. And it was time he made his attraction to her abundantly clear. Without the slightest hesitation, he pulled his shirt over his head and dropped his jeans.
Julia gasped as he joined her, naked as the day he was born.
Thomas was determined to remove all doubt from her mind about just how sexy he found her. If his words wouldn’t convince her, his rigid erection should go a long way to prove his point. Well, that and he planned to show her several times today through actions and words just how much a real man loved a woman with soft curves.
“You seem to be rather happy to see me.” Julia giggled as he snuggled her close.
“Damn straight. And don’t you forget it.”
Julia had never been a forward woman, but, dang it, her smoking hot, totally ripped mate, made her sweat under the water of the hot tub. Was that even physically possible? His thumb rubbing languidly up and down her arm had her body quivering in anticipation of more intimate contact. Ah, heck. Now her mouth was getting in on the action, watering like a spigot on high over his muscled chest and abs.
“This I could get used to,” Thomas said as he pulled her onto his very naked lap. No imagination needed there.
Thomas’s gaze was smoldering and burned with his unspoken lust. Holy smokes! He really is turned on by my body.
Yes. I am. And don’t you ever forget it, woman.
“This sure is pretty, what are you drinking?” Thomas asked, examining her pink and blue cocktail.
She passed her glass to him so he could taste it as she answered. “A Kinky Hook Up.”
Mid-swallow and he was choking and sputtering like a blue-haired old lady at a porno movie.
“A what?” he asked as he caught his breath.
Julia laughed at his reaction. “A Kinky Hook Up. It’s Kinky pink, Kinky blue, with lemon-lime soda. They’re really yummy. Most of the guys at the bar would never admit it, but they order them all the time.”
“It is tasty, not that I would admit that in public, mind you,” he grinned and then teased her, “Men require macho drinks, like whiskey in a shot glass.”
“Oh, they do?”
“Heck, yeah. We have macho reputations to uphold. Otherwise, someone might try to kick our ass. Oh, yeah. That already happened.”
Julia blushed and wiggled off his lap. “Sorry about that.”
Before he could stop her, she was out of the hot tub and wrapped in a towel.
“I’m going to get some clothes on.” Silently she walked to the house.
When she came down the hall from her bedroom, Thomas was waiting in the living room. Fully dressed, thank Goddess.
“What just happened here?” he asked with confusion etched across his features.
“I’m pretty sure the attack on you was my fault. Or, should I say, my mother’s.”
“If that was orchestrated by Lucinda, it wasn’t your fault.”
“Maybe so, but she did it to keep me from dating a human. So, essentially it was kind of my fault.”
“Babe, look at me.” He lifted her chin with one gentle finger. “Her actions are not your fault or responsibility. She will have to answer for that if she is found responsible. Do you understand me?”
Julia nodded.
“Good.” Taking her by the hand, he led her to the loveseat. “If you have a few minutes, I want to talk to you about some things.”
“All right.” His sexy, deep voice sent goosebumps over her arms, not to mention raised her blood pressure to a dangerous level. “What about?”
“Well, for one thing, that incredible sexy bikini is officially for my eyes only,” he stated, a smile evident in his tone. “As manly and strong as I am, I can’t spend my time beating men off you twenty-four-seven.”
His dimples dazzled her as he smiled wide. Dimples she hadn’t seen before, mainly because he’d never really smiled like this before. That smile was something she planned on seeing a lot. It made her heart stutter and stomach flutter.
“You sure are beautiful when you look at me like that.”
Julia just grinned at him and snuggled into his side. Goddess, I love those dimples, but no need to give him a big head over it.
You like my dimples, huh.
Shit.
Thomas laughed at her bright pink cheeks as he tucked a stray hair behind her ear.
“You keep looking at me like that, and I’ll never get around to telling you why I came over.”
Heat flashed down her neck and lower as she tried to hide her embarrassment.
As if he could see through her clothing he said, “I love it when you blush. But, I wonder if the pretty color goes all the way down to more…interesting places?”
She smacked him on the arm, and he chuckled again.
“I wanted to see you today before Jack and Michael arrive at the plantation. Etienne says they’re ready to join the security team, and I need to have a meeting with them and Isaac before we can move forward.”
“So why did you need to see me first?” Julia frowned.
“Based on what Etienne was telling me, his training crew is in Las Vegas. He feels we will be much more effective as a team if we train and practice together with his crew for a few weeks. That way I can learn the vampires’ abilities and how best to blend them with the shifters.”
Julia became very quiet. “I see.”
“I hate to leave you right now, but it can’t be helped. How about we plan a date night for the day I come home?”
His suggestion lightened the weight on her chest a bit. “Okay. What did you have in mind?”
“I have an early flight back three Mondays from now, so how about dinner in the Quarter? You pick the restaurant, and I’ll make reservations.”
“How about Irene’s?”
“Great! I love Italian food. Before I leave, can I get your work schedule? I’d like to call you or Skype when you have free time. I’d hate to bother you at work.”
Julia wrote out her schedule for the next three weeks with a sad heart. Being away from him that long was going to kill her. Not that she would tell him that. He had a job to do, and she wouldn’t cause him any guilt doing it.
“Here you go,” she said as cheerfully as she could.
“Thanks, babe.” Thomas pulled her in for a long toe-curling kiss before he leaned his forehead against hers. “Damn, I hate the thought of not seeing you for so long. Will you be okay? This isn’t going to cause you pain, is it?”
Julia knew she had to lie. Otherwise, he would refuse to go. “No, of course not. I’ll be fine.”
All he had to do was ask any shifter, and he would know the truth. Her mate being that far away without the ritual completed would be excruciating.
Chapter Nine
The past f
ew hours had been the best of Thomas’s life and would have to tide him over for the next twenty-one days. How had he gone from dead set against a relationship to not being able to live without his woman? Heck, he hadn’t even gotten her into his bed yet, and he could barely breathe without her. This mating thing was crazy, and scary, and awesome, all at the same time.
Checking his watch, he had thirty minutes before the meeting at Grandpa’s. That was just enough time to grab a sandwich and a change of clothes. Daydreaming about his woman came with very wet, very smelly, consequences. A few minutes ago, as he stepped from the dock, he’d found himself shin deep in swamp stank. The images of her bikini flashing through his mind should have come with a hazard warning. He was really going to have to work on his attention skills.
Thirty minutes later, Thomas heard the crowd in Grandpa Isaac’s office before he rounded the corner. It sounded like everyone except him was already present. Good, he hated waiting for people who couldn’t manage to tell time.
“Thomas!” Both Jack and Michael greeted him the second he crossed the threshold.
“It’s great to see you looking so well,” he greeted them back.
Fist bumps and one arm man hugs were energetically exchanged. He had really missed these guys.
Turning to the leaders present, he said, “It looks like we just need John, and we’re ready.”
As always, Etienne was regal and simply gave him a nod in recognition. And, of course, Grandpa smiled proudly from behind his desk.
A second later, John stepped through the door, prompt as usual. Of course, as children, Thomas had to beat punctuality into his little brother or else their father would do worse. But now, as an adult, John was never late if he could help it.
Isaac cleared his throat, and everyone took a seat.
“I think it would be best to bring Thomas and John up to speed on Jack and Michael’s gifts, as well as limitations.”
Etienne nodded his approval. “I agree. First and foremost, a young vampire cannot be in daylight. That ability comes with age and generally is available to vampires two hundred years and older. As thus, my men will be best suited for night work. They will need to feed at least once a week to maintain their strength. Otherwise, their diet is as normal as any of yours. Unlike the vampires of fantasy, we do not die in order to be converted and can survive for long stretches of time without blood at all. But to maintain our strength and speed, we need to feed regularly.”
“What kind of strength and speed are you talking about? Are you fast like a shifter?” John asked.
“We can move so swiftly you would think we had teleported. Our strength is equal to twenty human men. That was one of the main reasons the boys had to stay away from you and your families. As a newborn, a vampire must learn how to touch things without crushing them. It sounds ludicrous, but that is the way of it.”
“What other gifts do they bring to the security team?” Thomas asked with his notepad in hand.
“They can become invisible by bending the light so human eyes cannot detect them. I am told a shifter’s eyes can still see us but not a human’s. We discovered, quite by accident, that if several vampires form a circle and become invisible at the same time, it creates a bubble. Anything within the bubble is both invisible and sound-proof.
“I have taught both Jack and Michael mind control and programming. Very few vampires are trained in these gifts to maintain order in the power system we have created. But these two are like sons to me and as such, have my complete trust.”
Thomas finished scribbling his notes and glanced at Etienne again. “Are there any other gifts I should know about?”
“The three of us have exchanged blood in order to read each others’ minds and speak telepathically. If you would like them to be able to read your mind for security purposes, you will need to let each of them take a small amount of blood. Sadly, you will not be able to do the same since taking their blood would initiate your conversion to vampire. The best you would achieve is one-way communication.”
“So, it’s your blood, not the actual bite that converts? I was wondering about that,” John said.
“Yes, no one has pinpointed what exactly is in vampire blood to cause the conversion. Even we have tried to understand the cause and effect, but it remains a mystery.”
“What do you tell your new vampires and other supernaturals?” John asked as he sat forward, fascinated by the topic.
“We remain relegated to calling it magic,” Etienne quipped with a twinkle in his eye.
Isaac barked out a laugh at his old friend’s dry sense of humor.
“One last caution, a vampire is still a complete man if you get my point. Don’t be surprised by my men in Las Vegas having girlfriends and wives or boyfriends as the situation dictates. A few even have children. I own a block on the strip where I built a luxury condo high-rise for my family’s housing. I have assigned each of you a unit for the duration of your stay.
“There is a training facility below ground in the lower levels that has everything you will need and is available for your use at any time. The building is equipped with windows made of a customized two-way mirror substance. It blocks the harmful rays of the sun and looks like mirrored glass to the human eye. This protects the young vampires while allowing them to see daylight, which they would never have enjoyed a decade ago. It is not a perfect solution but better than we had before.”
Thomas was nodding along and taking notes as fast as he could. “What are our travel plans to get there and back while avoiding daylight?”
Isaac stood and rounded his desk. “I’ve already filed a flight plan for the Le Beau private jet. The plane will keep Jack and Michael safe while providing the discretion we require.”
“What about housing when we return? Do you have a plan in motion?” Thomas asked the consummate organizer.
“Jack and Michael have provided blueprints for their houses, and we’ll begin building while you are away. If we finish the lower levels first, they can live in them while we complete the aboveground portion. Living in a construction zone isn’t the most pleasant, but we’ll complete construction as quickly as possible.”
“If I may, I would like to offer a night crew so the construction may continue around the clock. That way the houses will be completed close to their return or fairly soon after.”
“That’s a great idea. Have your foreman meet with mine to plan the shifts.”
Thomas rubbed his hands together. “I guess that only leaves one thing, what time do we take off? I still need to pack.”
Jack finally joined the conversation then. “Two hours, just after dusk.”
“We would help but…” Michael joked.
“Yeah. Yeah.” John laughed. “You just hang out and drink Grandpa’s scotch. We’ll be back in about an hour.”
Few people knew of the private airfield, and family jet kept there. Now, two more were added to that very short list of people in the know. Jack and Michael boarded with John and Thomas as Isaac and Etienne watched over the airfield. Secrecy was imperative when security was a prime concern.
The flight from the plantation to Las Vegas was blessedly short. Etienne’s man in charge of his Las Vegas family waited patiently beside an already prepped helicopter.
Thomas grinned as he thought these vampires are the most organized group I’ve ever met.
The neon lights of the strip where almost blinding from above. Thomas glanced at John and then the vampires. The brightness must be too much for their sensitive eyes. Each wore black sunglasses, so dark he wondered if they could see at all.
The family compound was built almost dead center of the current city sprawl. Between the placement and height of the structure, the high rise afforded the vampires a leg up in maintaining control of the entire area. Thomas’s admiration increased tenfold. Etienne was a damn smart man and warrior.
The rooftop garden, and pool with waterfalls, was the ultimate oasis from th
e frenetic energy that coursed through the veins of the city of sin. With a refuge like this, he just might enjoy his three weeks here.
Within seconds of disembarking the helicopter, it lifted off and disappeared into the night. Three additional vampires joined them and escorted each of their party to their private suite.
Daaamn! His suite could have given any high roller’s penthouse in the city a run for its money. Etienne sure did believe in giving his family every comfort and convenience. The only thing it was missing was Julia.
Finished unpacking, he knocked on John’s door. Thank goodness, he was next door, this place was massive, and he didn’t care to prowl the halls looking for his crew. John’s suite was decorated in earth tones whereas his was blues and greens. Otherwise, they were very similar.
“Hey, bro. This is awesome!” John exclaimed.
“Mine, too.”
Moments later, Jack and Michael knocked on the door.
“They would like to give us a tour if you are done unpacking,” Michael said, as he sauntered through the open door.
John cocked his head as he studied the men closely for the first time. “Y’all move differently than you used too.”
“Yeah, you do,” Thomas agreed.
“All part of the vampire charm,” Jack grinned. “We have a gliding kind of walk rather than a human walk.”
Michael nodded. “We figured that influenced the fictional portrayal of vampires floating. Although the crazy powerful vampires like Etienne really can float. It’s actually kind of creepy to witness.”
“Enough vampire folklore.” Jack laughed. “Let’s get this tour started. How about the boring facts first? The building is fifty stories aboveground and eight below. The top story is Etienne’s personal penthouse, and directly below that is reserved for his personal guests. All other floors are either individual family units, meeting rooms or training space. All except basement eight that is reserved for—well let’s call them—‘encouragement rooms’. You never want to find yourself a guest in one of those rooms.”
Michael laughed along with Jack. “That’s for sure.”
“You saw the helipad when we landed. What you didn’t see was the rooftop pool and putting green.”